You prove my point with that statement alone. Unless you have photodocumentation of you personal effects or have had a site inspection by the insurance company, then good freaking luck trying to get them to pay off because you SAY there use to be a big screen TV in that hole in the wall. Have you ever tried to file a claim for stolen or destroyed "private" stuff?
Also, I did not let on I WAS a doctor; because I assumed THEN you would rant on about them and WELL YOU DID. I am a medical director for a small RURAL group and we are looking at a HUGE increase in cost to comply with this poorly thought out "privacy" law. We are going to spend an additional $500,000 just in the next year to comply with the idiotic regs promulgated by the government YOU seem convinced was trying to PROTECT you with this law. I can speak from personal experience that physicians all over the country were dreading the institution of these draconian regulations that the insurance industry had alread figured a way around. Medical management journals and meetings have been about almost nothing else for the last two years. Just ask yourself if you believe in this statement, "I'm from the government, and I'm here to help". Now look at which senior senator from New England is the FIRST to come out with a proposal to reverse GW's actions and ask yourself if you are really in the right.
And I am the husband and sole care giver to a quadriplegic spouse of 17 years who has fought HMO's the state paid to take over Medicaid tooth and nail. No outside help given BTW I do the care. Don't tell me about paper work and run arounds. I fought against this type of program happening tooth and nail. The truth is congress should not be protecting HMO's. The truth is Medicaid since money for services has been taken needs to be returned to it's origional intent and under scrunity of the state department of health under the state inspector generals office and not some politicans politically connected HMO.
I understand a lot more about this issue than you think I do. I want HMO's held liable in court for their malpractice do you? If they so choose to make a medical decession of life and death then they should as you Doctor answer for it. No I'm not saying I'm lawsuit happy. What I'm saying is the prior approval crap needs to stop. Write the rules and codes out in simple terms. This-this is covered period. This is not covered period. No questions, no begging, no prior approvals needed. Now would that or would that not stop most of it? If procedure A-R is covered then the doctor and only the attending doctor should say yes it needs done or no it does not.
But this issue only serves to side track addressing that ongoing abuse and like so many other Bush ideas justifies the abuse instead of addressing it. Get it now? Why should you Doctor be asking Hey MOE can I do this when the terms should be spelled out in laymans terms and be legally binding. No reason would be needed to violate privacy now would there?